


We'll Never Leave That Burning House

by SincerelyLittle



Series: Spotify Shuffle: Teen Wolf [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst and Feels, Cockatrices, Dreams, Dreams and Nightmares, Dreams vs. Reality, F/M, Ghosts, Kelpies, M/M, Magic, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Rebuilding the Hale House, Sleepwalking, Spark Stiles Stilinski, Talking To Dead People, The Hale Fire, Time Shenanigans, Weird chicken hybrids, the author has no idea what's happening
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-24
Updated: 2019-06-14
Packaged: 2019-07-16 13:46:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16087343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SincerelyLittle/pseuds/SincerelyLittle
Summary: Songs of Inspiration: Cam - Burning House & VillageStiles dreams he's at the Hale house a lot. He dreams he's having dinner with them, listening to Laura complain about her boyfriend, watching Cora copy her and make fun. He smiles as he listens about their day, he's heard this conversation millions of times now but he still loves it. Until they all go to bed and he knows in an hour the house will be up in flames and he can't do anything about it.Or can he?





	1. Chapter 1

Stiles wakes up in a cold sweat. A stark contrast to the heat he felt licking his skin mere seconds ago. He can still feel the fire surrounding him, making his skin scream and bubble and his lungs fill with dark smoke. Stiles doesn't care about that, he can wake up from it - the Hales can't. 

He sighs, glancing at his phone tells him it's 6am and his dad will be fast asleep from his late shift. Pulling himself out of bed, the sheets clinging to his skin like the smell of fire and smoke he swears he can smell hours after the dreams. He takes his time in the shower, letting his hands run over his skin and coating himself in sweet smelling foam. 

He'd rather the wolves around him complained his body wash was too strong than he smelt like burnt skin and smoke. 

Flashes of the dream come back to him as he's showering; him breaking the mountain ash barrier and carrying some of the more injured out - only for them to shoved back with more mountain ash and a few wolfs bane bullets for good measure. 

At least he was the age he is now, he had 18 years of muscle mass and traumatic events to help him with. He hated it when he woke up in the Hale house but as a younger version of himself, he found it harder to do anything about to fire and it resulted in more tears than he could handle. 

It's 7:30 when he's dressed, put his sheets in the wash and made breakfast for his dad - he won't eat it until later but Stiles knows if he didn't make any the man wouldn't eat at all. Taking a deep breath and clutching the keys to his jeep he prepares himself for the day ahead. 

Walking through the town centre always gives him a melancholic feeling these days. All he can think about is how Peter told him in a dream that he always used to eat under that tree because the sun could shine on him and keep him warm without it blinding him. Or if Stiles took a left here he'd find the basketball court Derek used to practice on. 

Not that he can mention any of that to anyone. They'd ask him how he'd know such information and he's not supposed to get close to Peter - Scott's too afraid the man is still psycho, even though Stiles knows that's not true. He quite likes the man. Derek definitely wouldn't have mentioned it. He's too wrapped up in grief and self hate for Stiles to even broach the topic. 

Besides what can he say? _'Oh by the way Derek did you really try to copy a move from a film and end up breaking breaking your nose on the hoop?'_ he's pretty sure that Derek would smother him in his leather jacket if he asked. 

He follows Scott, Allison and Lydia into the diner, his stomach grumbling as soon as smells curly fries. It's summer break and everyone decided for the first year they'd all come back from whatever colleges they're at and spend it here. He didn't think they would all come back and he was right. 

Stiles never left, he tried but the dreams stopped him. Besides he likes taking his college courses online. He managed to enrol in two different colleges and he's currently working on three different projects. One on supernatural and magic research, one on the evolution of psychopaths and sociopaths and another on how people can skirt around the law. 

He loves the classes he's picked and when he gets bored researching for one paper he can switch to another and have his mind wander in different places. Sometimes they intersect but that's what his board and coloured strings are for! 

Sitting himself down between Erica and Kira, he smiles to himself when he realises the table they're sat at is the one where Mark - Peter's brother - started a food fight and ended up being banned for life. He wonders if Peter's been in since. Stiles would love to bring the man here but Scott didn't leave either and ever since Allison left for France he's been all up in Stiles business.

Though he guesses now she's back Scott will go back to forgetting Stiles ever existed which is good for something he thinks. 

" **Stiles?** Stiiiles? What's he smiling at?" Stiles zones back into reality with Erica poking his cheek repeatedly. 

"Hey that hurts! Fragile human here!" he complains, rubbing his cheek with a pout. 

Erica huffs and rolls her eyes at him, "So what were you smiling at batman? Got yourself a secret lover?" she wiggles her eyebrows at him and he pushes her shoulder lightly. 

"He's probably thinking about the fun him and his right hand are gonna have later" Isaac smirks at him, though the guy winks so he knows it's meant to be more of a joke than a harsh reality statement. 

Stiles smirks back, leaning forward to hold his hand, making the man blush and stare at him. "Maybe I was thinking about _your_ hand..." he whispers, laughing when the blush seems to take over his whole face and Allison is nudging her boyfriend. Scott, Allison and Isaac had started an open relationship for a year before the two of them left for France and Scott stayed to go to veterinary school here. 

It seems to have worked out for them though and Stiles has too much information on their skype calls than he ever needed. Scott seriously needs to stop telling the world about his private life, for everyone else's sake. 

They all chat to each other about their lives while they eat, they all decided to meet here before heading to Derek's loft so they could arrive together. Stiles must have spaced out looking out the window because he's being nudged by Kira as she points at the empty table he's sat at. 

"Come on Sparky, Scott said they should get going to Derek's loft. You were sorta out of it so I don't think you heard." Kira tilts her head towards the parking lot where he sees everyone driving away, and if that doesn't sum up his life then he doesn't know what does. 

He sighs and leaves his money and tip on the table before moving to join Kira, "Guess some things don't ever change huh?" he chuckles harshly. 

Kira smiles softly at him, "Yeah we're always the last two eating." She links her arm in his and they walk towards his jeep. He loves Kira, he honestly does. They've been practising their magic together and learning how to control their sparks in different ways. 

When they arrive at the loft no one really notices they've entered aside from Derek and Peter. When he makes eye contact with the latter of the two he can't help but reach out towards him, Kira smiles at him when she notices but he pulls himself back. 

He knows why he reached out. Peter was the last thing he saw in his dream last night, when he couldn't get anyone out of the fire again he resolved himself to laying beside the man, using his body to shield Peter from as much of the fire he could. 

He rubs arm remembering the fire catching his sleeve and climbing up it. He can't think of how it must feel for Peter to have actually gone through it, without Stiles blocking most of it. 

He finds himself looking back at him, shocked when he sees Peter watching him. Eyes calculating and he swears he sees concern on his face but it's gone a second later when Scott is shouting at them for taking so long. 

"Maybe you shouldn't have left us behind then, Scotty" Stiles says it jokingly but the feelings hidden behind it aren't so funny. He feels Peter brush past him and he can't help but lean into the touch for a second before pulling himself forward and towards the rest of the group. 

He ignores Peter's questioning glances for the rest of the evening until he can go home and see him in a dream where he's free to laugh with the man and perfect a recipe for peanut butter cups better than Reese's own. 


	2. Chapter 2

When Stiles wakes up shivering despite the dream he's just had, he knows somethings not right. He should be waking up stuck to his sheets and still feeling his body burning next to Peters. 

He opens his eyes to the sight of a broken rotting roof and the early morning light pouring into it, instead of the slightly stained ceiling of his bedroom that he's used to. 

Wincing as his body protests movement he pushes himself off the dirty floor, of what he assumes is the basement, he was clinging to Peter in mere moments before. He's slightly worried about being under a burnt house, more so because of the stability of said house rather than his appearance there. 

He makes sure to step carefully as he makes his way out, he doesn't want to cut himself and get who knows what infections or get his blood all over the house for Derek to find. 

Stiles thinks about the apparent sleepwalking on his way home, it might be one of the new spells he tried or something he did during the dream that translated into the real world. 

Maybe it was the mountain ash surrounding them? It works on intent and if there's any left lingering in the burnt husk of a house it could be pulling Stiles closer during his sleep. 

Its not a big deal. He'll just have to start wearing his shoes to bed. Possibly a jacket, he rubs his arms as he follows the trail from the preserve to his back garden. At least he wore pants last night. 

He was a younger version of himself this time and he's glad he woke up his normal self if sleepwalking is on the table now. He _is_ messing with time so Stiles guesses it makes sense that time would mess with him too. 

He's started seeing changes in the dreams, he's different ages more often that not. Sometimes he's himself as he is now, sometimes he's Derek's age back then, others he's a child, sometimes he's Cora's age at the time and a couple of times he's been older than he is now. 

Future Stiles freaks him out a little bit, but again if he's going to mess with time he has to be prepared to be messed with back. 

But hey, if future Stiles looks that hot, he isn't going to complain! 

**oOo**

The sleepwalking happens consistently now, every time he falls asleep he wakes up inside the Hale house. Even if it's just a nap! He's had to be very careful about where he chooses to sleep, because he isn't sure if he just ups and disappears or if he walks to the Hale house and somehow gets to whatever floor he was last in in the dream 

Stiles has gotten pretty used to the basement now, he knows where to step so he can make it out safely and he knows which parts will break if he jostles them too much. He'd rather not be buried alive under here and add more trauma to the living Hales. 

Last week he ended up in a bathtub that was slanting precariously off the edge of the building, he'd very nearly peed himself trying to get out of it. He felt like those people in the movies that he shouts at when they lean too far backward and he knows that the car should have fallen off the cliff by now. 

He could almost hear people shouting at him to lean left and stop fidgeting Stiles! But he blames his overactive imagination for that one. 

"I swear I left my hoodie here last time..." he mumbles to himself as he moves towards the house, he's learnt to leave supplies behind because he doesn't know when he'll wake up. The last time he woke up in pitch black dark in a creaky house, it wasn't so fun. He doesn't bring food though because he doesn't want any more rats than he's seen already. 

His clothes are dewy and gross, he had to peel a slug of his t-shirt when he'd woken up outside this morning. "Slime trails are weird" he says to himself as he peels off the t-shirt to swap clothing. 

"Stiles? Are you okay, because I believe I just saw you sleeping outside." Stiles almost breaks his neck his head turns that fast, he gets that awful rush of blood or whatever it is though and his vision darkens for a second. 

"Fuck, creeperwolf, ever heard of announcing yourself before you enter a room?" Stiles rubs at his throat before blinking at Peter. "Seriously man, I could have had a heart attack." 

Peter just raises an eyebrow at him and crosses his arms, "Care to explain yourself Stiles? Because it looked to me like you weren't phased that you just woke up outside the shell of my former home." 

Stiles winces at the words and shrugs, "A bit of camping?" it sounds more like a question than an answer so he just sighs and starts heading out of the house. Brushing his wet hair away from his face and frowning at it. "What are you doing out here anyways?" 

"Camping, without a tent? I didn't take you for such an adventurous guy." Peter falls into step next to him, he can feel the mans eyes roaming over his body before settling to stare at the side of his head. 

"I was enjoying my morning run, when I heard a certain teenager grumbling about grass stains and wet pants and not in a good way might I add." Stiles glares at the smirk Peter's giving him but he can see an ebb of concern. 

Stiles just shrugs, he doesn't trust himself not to say anything that wouldn't include the fire or Peter himself. So he opts for not saying anything at all. 

Peter watches him for a few seconds more before scooping Stiles up and carrying him. And he means it when he says scoop, the man literally took Stiles' legs from underneath him and is bridal carrying him through the preserve. 

"Peter! Oh my god, put me down! You are not carrying me to your underground cave network to have your wicked way with me!" Stiles fidgets to try and get out of Peter's hold, nearly elbowing the man in the face and ending up on the floor face first. 

Peter manages to rearrange him so he's over the mans shoulder instead and Stiles thinks this is marginally better because now Peter can't see his blush but Stiles can see Peter's ass. And Peter has a _great_ ass. 

"First of all you'l have to ask me nicely if you want me to _have my wicked way with you._ Second of all, I do not live in an underground cave network, how many times do I have to tell you." he feels Peter's shoulders shaking with laughter before he hears the quiet chuckles, and the sound makes Stiles belly feel warm. It's so reminiscent of the sound he hears in his dreams that he finds himself leaning up to ruffle the mans hair. 

Peter stops mid stride and stares at him, Stiles just stares back before pushing himself off Peter and sliding onto the ground. "Thanks for the help zombiewolf, I appreciate it. " Stiles knows Peter can see the blush on his face, hell Stiles bets someone across the street could see the blush on Stiles' face right now. 

He awkwardly pats the mans shoulder and jogs the short distance to his back yard, he swears he can hear a woman's laughter and feel hands ruffling his own hair but he blames that on the wind. 

Once he's crept back into the house, up the stairs and into the shower he finally lets his brain catch up with the events. 

In the dream he was at the Hale house a week before the fire started, he was Peter's age and got to hang out with him and Laura at the arcade. He beat them both at the claw machine and brought everyone back a bunch of goodies - the arcade clerk thought he was cheating and they were kicked out but it was so worth it. 

He have a vague memory of gifting Derek a grumpy cat that looks a lot like he does now. 

His mind wanders to how this is the most that he and Peter have touched outside of the dreams since last year. His dick seems to have a major interest in that and his heart seems to beat overtime at the idea of them seeing more of each other from now on. 

Stiles' brain however tells him to ignore both those things since you shouldn't think with your penis and his heart doesn't know what it's trying to get itself into... His dick either for that matter. 


	3. Chapter 3

This is the third week that Stiles has woken up inside the Hale house and the fifth time he's woken up in the dining room. Something is different this time though, Stiles notes that the wallpaper seems to be completely redone and there's a few kitchen utensils strewn about. 

Which really? He thinks Derek should start from the floor up rather than start buying kitchen equipment if he's rebuilding. 

Stiles understands the need for food though so he'll let him off. 

"Huh, I wonder when he started this?" Stiles runs his hands along the wallpaper and it feels strangely warm, like a house in winter that's had the heating on for the past two days. He see's a small childlike drawing of a wolf on the far corner of the paper, near the doorway - just out of sight enough that a mother wouldn't notice it and ground you. 

Stiles smiles as he runs his hand over it, he remembers Cora drawing this in one of his dreams. Derek must have somehow restored it, Stiles is impressed and glances around the dining room once more. 

"Some of the wall's been fixed... and the roof." he notes to himself, mentally comparing what he remembers and what he can see. "Derek's awesome." he mumbles with a smile on his face before leaving to head back home. He's got a paper due today and it's unfortunately not going to write itself. 

Stiles is halfway through writing his paper, _'At least seven reasons not to fuck with Dionysus'_ , when Peter climbed through his window, causing Stiles to metaphorically shit himself. 

"Here, take a fucking key! You're all going to send me to an early grave jumping out at me like that." Stiles rubs his chest with a grimace, throwing a key at Peter. He'd added a little zombie charm to it so Peter doesn't lose it. 

Peter eyeballs the key before staring at him, "Are you sure you want to give me a key to your house Stiles? Who knows what I could do." Peter smirks at him but Stiles just rolls his eyes. 

"Sure Peter, what are you going to do? Move all my stuff slightly to left like you do with Mark?" Stiles snorts to himself remembering Mark whining about how he keeps running into things in his bedroom. 

Stiles doesn't realise his mistake until he's sat in silence for a good two minutes. He mumbles curses under his breath, even though Peter can probably hear them, before turning around to see Peter staring at him again. This time Stiles can see confusion and a little bit of fear in the man's eyes. 

"Peter..." he stands up to reach out for the man but Peter takes a sharp step back and watches him like he's calculating how much Stiles knows and how much of a threat he is. "Peter calm down." 

He steps into the wolf's space again and places his hands on Peter's forearms. "How do you know about that? I didn't tell you that Stiles and I don't believe any of us have mentioned my brother." Peter's voice is cold and Stiles winces slightly, he understands that Peter wasn't ready to share anything yet. 

So he thinks maybe evening the playing field might settle him down, he's not sure how long Peter will let him hold onto him otherwise. "My uh- My mom, she used to hide my shoes and tell me that small goblins had moved them in the night and if I didn't find them in time they'd eat them." he smiles up at Peter, watching the man's face soften before continuing. "I'd spend hours running around the house looking for them, scared that they'd be eaten and I'd never have teenage mutant ninja turtle trainers ever again." 

When he hears Peter laughing quietly he tugs the man over to the bed and sits him down, Stiles sitting down in the middle behind him. He doesn't hesitate to slot himself against Peter's back, head coming to rest between his shoulder blades. "I'd cry when I could only find one and I'd set traps for the goblins to stop them from stealing them." He's talking quietly now, voice barely above a whisper and Peter his listening to every word. He'd slid his hands down Peter's arms again, it seemed to calm both of them down and he could feel Peter's heartbeat evening out underneath his palms. 

"Stiles, what are you hiding from me?" he feels Peter gently place his hand over his own and Stiles sighs. "I'm asking because you seem to know more than you let on, which is something I've noticed you do a lot but never with me. You tell me everything without even saying it most of the time, the small looks across the room to tell me you don't agree with what Scott's saying or a smile to let me know you agree with me." 

Peter suddenly turns around so he's the one holding Stiles' arms and looking directly into his eyes. Peter's a flashing blue and Stiles bets his are blown wide. They're both searching each others faces for some sort of clue. 

"Why is our bond so much stronger than before when we've hardly spoken to each other, aside from this month." Peter asks quietly, his thumbs slowly rubbing circles into Stiles' skin. "Why... why do we feel-" Peter stops himself from finishing the sentence so Stiles finishes it for him. 

He leans up, sliding an arm out of Peter's grip so he can gently cup the man's face. "Like pack?" he smiles kindly, letting Peter analyse him, listen to his heartbeat, search his eyes and scent his emotions. "I've always been in your pack Peter, this bond's always been here, ever since I fell off that swing set and you helped me home. " 

This is one memory he knows is real, he'd remembered it when he met Derek back in the woods before seconds before everything went to hell. It isn't one of his dreams, it's real and he'd felt something inside him shift and eventually figured out what it was when the world of werewolves crashed into him. 

"It's okay if you don't remember it, it was a brief meeting and I didn't remember it myself until a few years back. I guess I sort of imprinted on you?" Stiles grins when Peter glares at him. 

"Do not bring twilight into this Stiles." Peter sighs and pulls away from the bed and Stiles. "I- I need a moment." Peter turns around to leave when Stiles pulls him back. 

He points to his laptop, "Wanna watch a movie? We don't have to talk, I just thought that you might want to stay?" he pulls it onto his bed and pats the space next to him. "You can pick the film." he offers, he clicks save on his paper and thanks the lord that he didn't close it off in the panic of Peter entering his room. 

They end up watching stupid rom-coms all night, something that they can watch without having to think too hard about. Stiles spends half of it thanking whoever is listening that Peter lost track of thought and didn't ask him how he knew about Mark again. 

He falls asleep that night, snuggled into Peter's side and listening to his heartbeat as the film plays quietly in the background. It's the same warm and safe feeling he gets from thinking about his mom in her early days, the same feeling he gets from in the Hale house before it goes up in flames and the same feeling he gets when his Dad smiles proudly at him and watches the football with him on Sunday nights. 

It's the feeling of family, of safety, of love and it's the feeling that Stiles knows he doesn't want to ever lose. 

**oOo**

For the next week he spends his days with the guys in Derek's loft or out in the town. He and Lydia went shopping - or well Lydia dragged him out shopping for a back to college outfit - and he spent the entire time looking for the arcade machine he found all those years ago in a dream. 

He finds it and manages to win another grumpy cat! When they return to the loft he proudly presents it to Derek who's glaring at him in confusion. "It's for you sourwolf, take it!" he catches Peter's eye and smiles before refocusing his attention on the man in front of him. 

"Didn't you get me one of these before?" Derek asks, taking the stuffed animal out of Stiles hands and staring at it almost lost in thought, before he realises what he's said and stares in confusion. 

Stiles heartbeat must be going haywire and he's sure he can alarm bells going off in his head. He just laughs awkwardly and says if he did then the man has two now and should be happy he has a new friend. He feels Peter watching him for the rest of the day. 

His nights are spent researching ways to change the past, how to stop fires and practised magic with Kira on the Wednesday night. Trying to any new way he can affect the dreams and change something about that night. 

Every time he wakes up in the Hale house he notices something new; a window that's been restored, the foundations being stronger, the broken beam from the basement has been put back into the ceiling and he swears the house's foundations seem stronger. There's more wallpaper and paint appearing in random parts of the hallways and rooms, small toys and books that seem both old and new are found in cupboards and on the floor. 

He meets up with Derek and Peter at the airport to meet Cora who's coming back for a few months. She only has two weeks with the rest of the gang but Stiles thinks she doesn't mind that too much. He can't wait to see all the photographs she's taken, he emails her from time to time but he wants to make a photo album for her and he wants to see her face to face. 

While they're waiting for her plane to land he mentions the odd way that Derek is rebuilding. 

"Dude seriously, who re-papers the walls before putting a new floor in or you know taking apart the burnt foundations?" Stiles asks him, genuinely confused on the man's methods. 

Derek and Peter both stare at him before looking at each other and shaking their head. "It's not me doing it Stiles, I thought it was Peter since his scent has been around the area more... so has yours." he raises an eyebrow at him, waiting for an answer. 

"It's not me either and I can't smell anyone else on the premises... just us and... " he trails off, sharing a glance with Derek before looking away. 

Stiles decides not to question it and tells himself he'll be dissecting all the information he has later. For now it's time to fling himself into Cora's arms and see if he can make her fall over like he sees in all those movies he and Peter watched. 


	4. Chapter 4

There's been a new development in his dreams lately and Stiles thinks it's because he's surrounded by the Hales more; ever since Cora came home Stiles could be found hanging out in Derek's loft at any time of day or night. 

Derek's gotten pretty used to it by now. He'd come home and Stiles would be playing video games and shouting at Cora for cheating, he'd open the bathroom door only to get a squawk and a bar of soap thrown at his head because _'I'm enjoying the bubbles Sour wolf, my kingdom needs me, get out!'_ and then there was the early hours of this morning when Derek had come down to see Peter and Stiles cuddled up on the sofa watching movies. 

Stiles is arriving at different stages of the Hale's life now in his dreams; the latest one being he'd stumbled into the living room where teenage Peter was making out with some guy on the couch - Peter swears it's because he wants to blackmail Talia for more time with the tv, Stiles thinks it's because he couldn't make it to the bedroom. 

He manages to escape Peter's claws and thank him for the blackmail for future use on the type of guys Peter likes and his _'moves'._

Thankfully he wakes up before Peter can kill him for being cheeky. 

He's noticed more things he's doing in the dreams and at the house are affecting the present; items appearing in the Hale house, things cropping up in conversations and he's even noticed changes in himself. 

His body is filling out more, he's still lithe but he has more muscles than before. It's probably from the amount of times he's tried pulling the Hale's out of the fire or moved fallen debris. 

Peter has definitely noticed the way Stiles has changed. He's constantly watching him now, his gaze switching from lust to intrigue to concern. 

Stiles isn't sure how to deal with any of it so he opts for focusing his mind on stopping the fire and doubling his efforts. Kira keeps telling him his magic seems stronger so he can start trying new things; maybe more spells than mountain ash this time. 

The guys obviously started questioning him when tattoos started littering his body, he didn't try very hard to hide them. He likes the way they look and feel on his skin and it's none of their business what he does with his body or the magic inside it. 

"Stiles, have you been to the house recently?" Derek sniffs him as he walks past him, "You smell like...home." he struggles on the last word but he sticks by it, looking at Stiles for his answer.

"Like the house you mean?" Stiles raises a brow at him and rubs the back of his neck, he woke up at the Hale house again this morning but he's showered since. He didn't think it would still cling to him. Derek just shakes his head and Stiles catches him and Peter share a glance again. 

He shrugs it off for now in favour of trying to guess the ending of the episode that Cora's watching and dodging the cushion she's trying to kill him with. 

"Perthro, hm?" Peter's voice sends Stiles sprawling off the sofa and onto the floor between Cora and Lydia. After a few choice words from both him and Cora he's able to rearrange himself and look up at Peter, who's of course staring down at him in amusement. 

Peter helps him back up onto the sofa, smiling at him and reaching out to move Stiles head so he can see the tattoo on the back of it. "If anyone needs luck and help with living with the unknown it's me." he laughs quietly, leaning into Peter's touch and letting the man scent mark him. Their bond seems to pulse between them. 

Peter's ears twitch lightly and his brow furrows like he's trying to listen to something but when he shakes his head it seems to be forgotten. Stiles watches him for a few seconds more before turning back to Lydia and Cora, though Cora seems to have her attention back on the tv again. Lydia on the other hand is watching him like a hawk her face seems pale and he sees her hands shake slightly. 

"Hey Lyds, you okay?" Stiles voice snaps her out of whatever trance she was in, picking herself up off the floor and motioning for him to follow. He glances at Peter before shrugging and following her out. 

Stiles tries to get her to talk to him for at least five minutes but Lydia just keeps walking until - Stiles is guessing - they're out of werewolf hearing range and whirls on him. "Before you ask, this isn't about you and Peter." 

Whatever he thought he was going to say stop before he can make the slightest of noise. "I don't particularly care if you guys get together, Peter's not the same as back then and if he makes you happy then that's all that matters to me. He's not trying to kill me or you or anyone that I care about so he's fine with me Stiles." she explains, flipping her hair behind her shoulder when she's finished speaking as if to say this part of the conversation is over. 

"Okay... So what's up?" he leans against the stairwell wall and watches her carefully. Notes how her fingers are entwined but still twitching like she wants to move them but doesn't want to make nervous movements. She's staring more next to Stiles than at him directly and her breathing seems to be shallower. 

"I'm not sure how to say this so I'm just going to be blunt about it." she waits for Stiles to nod before taking a deep breath and finally making eye contact. "I can see people, hanging around you, following you even. I don't know who they are, they're kinda blurry? They touch you sometimes and they seem to know who you are and who we are." she watches for his reaction so he tries to keep his face as neutral as possible. 

When she's satisfied he's not going to freak out she continues. "If I focus on them too long they start trying to talk to me, it sounds like white noise mainly but sometimes I hear them mention Peter or Derek, sometimes it's warnings like _be careful_ or _help him._ " her eyes flicker past him again but quickly refocus. 

"I don't know what you're doing Stiles but don't get yourself killed and we're here for you, you know that right?" Lydia tugs on his sleeve and he nods. 

"Of course Lyds, I'll let you know if anything happens." he wraps an arm around her shoulder and they begin walking back to the loft. "Thanks for the nightmare fuel though, really appreciate it." he grins at her when she shoves him away. Laughing about how he should get an anti-nightmare symbol tattooed on him. 

He totally would if he wasn't worried about getting locked out of his current dream process. He doesn't want to risk not being able to go back. 

He spends the rest of the night smiling to himself because he thinks he's figured out who's following him around and it would explain quite a few things going on his life right now. 


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm very forgetful I'm sorry!!

Stiles is hanging upside down on the sofa when Isaac saunters into the loft with Scott following behind him. 

"Still here, Stiles?" Isaac comments, dropping his scarf on Stiles' face as he plops down next to him, jostling him and sending him slowly sliding onto the floor. He probably could have pulled himself up if he'd tried. But who has the effort for that? Not him, obviously. 

"He's always here." Derek grumbles from his spot on the other sofa, Stiles glances up to see him still pretending to read like he has been for the past half hour. Stiles saw him laughing quietly at the cartoons Stiles put on earlier, before he'd decided to watch them upside down for better entertainment. 

When he pulls himself back onto the chair he makes sure to land more on Isaac than on the chair itself. "You should just move in." Isaac readjusts himself so Stiles is between his legs and his head is resting on top of Stiles'. 

They sit like this when binge watching tv shows together, Isaac likes the comfort of having someone close and Stiles likes the warmth. Also Isaac tends to play with his hair once he's distracted and Stiles **loves** his hair being played with. Isaac's long fingers know just where to work themselves into and it's easy to fall asleep to.

He like it when Peter does it more...But those are for different reasons that he'd like to leave undisclosed thank you very much.

"I have to make sure my dad isn't sneaking junk food, which he one hundred percent will do if I'm not there." Stiles pouts when he thinks about the meals his dad would have if he moved away. "Besides I prefer Peter's place, it's got a better bath tub." He snuggles himself into Isaac as the guy laughs at him. 

Scott makes a choking sound and Stiles raises an eyebrow at him. "You've been to Peter's place?! Alone?!" Stiles sighs at his old best friends voice, "Yes Scotty, I've been into the big bad wolfs lair by myself, he lives in an underground cave network you know? He totally has a special oven for the bunny rabbits he kills out in the preserve." 

Thankfully Scott hears the sarcasm and leaves the subject well enough alone. Stiles doesn't want to deal with Scott's whining about Stiles having a life outside of him and it being one that involves Peter. Especially when the guy deems it okay to ignore Stiles existence 80% of the time. 

They've been here three weeks already and he's seen Scott four times, and once was passing in the grocery store and even then he just waved a cereal box at him and walked away. 

One friend lost but a family found he thinks as he watches Cora and Peter enter the room with bags full of food and drinks, Cora sparing a hand to mess her brother's hair up and flip Stiles off. 

"Lydia called to make sure you weren't shopping with us, Kit." She calls out from the kitchen and Stiles rolls his eyes. Lydia had already made Kira text, call and then video chat him to make sure he isn't anywhere near buying things for the party she's throwing. 

"I don't get why she didn't just believe me!" he huffs out, "Or why she didn't let me help shop." he's grumbling and Isaac helps by petting his head reassuringly. 

He ruins it though when he speaks. "Because you've never lied to us about where you are, right Stiles?" It's a fair point but also ouch Isaac! He can practically feel Derek's eyebrows agreeing with Isaac's point. 

"They just don't want to end up eating Doritos and dip the entire night Kit" Peter chimes in, he must have finished unpacking, Stiles smiles at the man. His chest warms when Peter smiles back, their hands find each others necks to scent each other. 

Stiles is pretty much mimicking what the other wolves do, it isn't the same experience for him but he can feel the bonds humming between everyone when he does it. "Doritos are great though!" he has to defend his food choices. 

"Seconded but I'd like other food available, plus I doubt Derek wants orange fingerprints scattered around his loft." Peter chuckles and everyone enjoys Derek's sour expression at the mere thought of that. 

Scott has been quiet since Cora and Peter returned so Stiles thinks it's about time he asked if the dude was alright. "You okay there buddy?" 

It takes a couple of seconds for Scott to snap out of his thoughts and focus on him. "Yeah, are you guys having a party?" he shakes his head and looks over at Derek for confirmation. 

"It's all Lydia's fault" is the response Derek gives and even though it sounded annoyed, they all know that he's happy to have everyone close and a happy atmosphere.

He's probably not happy about the hypothetical Doritos dust situation. 

"You'd know about it if you ever looked at the text Kit sends you." Cora says it calmly but the air around her seems anything but. Stiles loves that she's defending him and see's him as something worth defending, however it's so not the conversation he wants to have. 

He raises an eyebrow at her and she raises one right back. "Down girl." he chuckles, cuddling the pillow she throws at him - Stiles knows it's full of affection. 

"Why do you all keep calling him Kit? That doesn't sound anything like Stiles' name." Scott asks, completely ignoring the topic of unread text messages. Which thanks for that punch to the gut Scotty but also thanks for not making a big deal out of it. 

Peter tuts at him, he's almost glaring at the poor guy when he explains the nickname. "It's because I think he's fox like and Cora thinks he isn't graceful enough to be a fox so we call him kit, a baby fox that stumbles about everywhere." he winks at Stiles with a soft smile. "Both are cute, though I happen to think Stiles is graceful when he wants to be." 

Stiles blushes at both comments and clears his throat, he can feel Isaac laughing beneath him and can see Cora smirking at him from the kitchen doorway. 

Conversation eventually turns away from Stiles resemblance to animals to small talk. It doesn't take long for Lydia and Kira to return from shopping, they'd gone for decorations but seem to have bought a fuck ton more. Kira looks exhausted and Stiles feels sorry for her because he's been shopping with Lydia and it's hell on earth. 

Kira flops down between Stiles legs, wrapping her arms around his waist and squishing her face in his hoodie. He feels her hands wiggling behind him to push under Isaacs shirt, both of them laughing when Isaac complains about how cold they are and trying to wiggle away.

"Do I still have legs? Or have they worn away from all the walking?" she groans out, relaxing herself into Stiles as she does. 

"You still have your beautiful legs don't worry." Lydia scoffs as she slips off her heels and sets about decorating the loft. Peter brings her out a coffee and they talk about moving furniture for more space. 

The rest of the day is spent following Lydia's orders and getting themselves ready. 

**oOo**

The party was initially for the two packs before everyone heads back home for the next school term but quickly turned into a party-party that involved strangers, loud music and lots of alcohol. 

Stiles had left the loft when all the original gang had arrived to go check on his dad and make sure he'd had a good day at work, however when he came back there were at least thirty more people and he only knew a handful of them.

Lydia's playlist was blasting from the speakers Derek had set up for them and there are LED lights sending the room into a spiral of colours. 

"What happened in the - " he checks his watch before looking at Kira in wonder " _fifteen minutes_ I've been gone?" He accepts a drink from her and follows her into the kitchen.

"Lydia happened." they laugh with each other and Stiles notes that Peter seems to be hiding away in here too. 

Making his way through the people in the kitchen proves easier than he thought when Peter catches sight of him and reaches out to tug him forward. "You hogging all the Doritos for me, creeperwolf?" he nuzzles his face into the mans neck before pulling back to let Peter do the same to him. 

Peter points to the cupboard above his head and Stiles nods happily, "Thank you for protecting my possessions." Stiles smirks and uses the hand that Peter still has a hold of to pull them both out of the kitchen and into the main space. 

"Come on Peter, you can't stay in there all night, dance with me?" Stiles grins when Peters demeanour changes, instead of the soft man he'd been in the kitchen he's now smirking down at Stiles, hands moving to grab at Stiles' hips and pull them closer to Peter's own. 

Stiles has been touching Peter for less than a minute, yet his body feels like it's burning up. He hasn't broke eye contact with Peter as the man moves their bodies to the music. Tugging him closer and then pushing him away to spin him or just to distance him to see the way Stiles makes his way back to him. 

They're moving together in the middle of dancing strangers for around ten minutes, just enjoying each others presence and embracing the happiness radiating between them and their bond.

Kira rejoins them a few seconds later when Stiles catches her being a wallflower, he opens his arms to her and waits for her to come running to them. He spins her around so Peter can grab her other hand and she's dancing with the three of them. 

Next is Isaac who seems slightly tipsy, his face is flushed and his hair is wild but he has a beaming grin across his face when he slides behind Stiles to cling onto his back and sway with them. 

They tried to get Cora to join but she flipped them off and carried on chatting to Boyd on the sofa, Erica was probably somewhere in the kitchen making people do shot of alcohol that shouldn't be mixed together. 

He's being spun around by Kira when he first sees something, he blames it on the alcohol and his eyes messing with him but he takes note of it. 

The second time he's leaning over the back of the sofa to watch everyone dance. He catches a glimpse of Laura doing silly dance moves around Cora. He decides to wait until he see's something again, three's a pattern and all that.

When he ends up watching Mark trying to knock Peter's drink out of his hand but ultimately fail he laughs quietly to himself and heads for the stairs. He notices Peter twitching and looking in the general direction that Mark is in but nothing conclusive. 

He thanks his lucky stars when he finds one of the bathrooms empty, he takes a seat on the edge of the tub and tries to calm his breathing. "Maybe they're echoes?" he thinks aloud to himself, they could just be something he's seen in a dream or a memory that's mixing with reality like before. 

Stiles is about to stand up and go back downstairs but when he looks up he comes face to face with a concerned looking Talia, sending him sprawling backwards into the bath tub, his butt hitting the bottom with a painful thud. He's just glad it's not his head, he doesn't think Derek would forgive him if he brained himself on his bathroom floor. 

"Holy mother of.... Derek?" he can't help but stare when he can move his gaze from his legs in the air to Talia who still seems to be here. "Fuck... Are you real or am I just really drunk?" Stiles asks as he rubs his sore backside - that's definitely going to bruise. 

He watches Talia open her mouth but before she can say a word - if she was going to that is - Peter is pushing the door open and raising his eyebrows at him. 

"Pretty sure you need to have water in the tub and to be naked for a bath, sweetheart." He reaches out to help pull Stiles out and glances over his body. "I could help you with that if you like." the words are quietly whispered into his ear, sending shivers down his spine. 

He probably would have taken Peter up on that offer is Talia hadn't entered his line of vision and rolled her eyes, saying _' he's a smooth but cocky son of a bitch - no offence Mom.'_

Holding in his laughter was hard and thankfully not needed since Peter didn't seem to hear what Talia had said and Stiles could play it off at Peter's pass at him. 

"Next time creeperwolf, I'm all for an audience but maybe not one this big yeah?" he smirks, patting Peter's shoulder and leading them out of the bathroom. Stiles makes sure to make eye contact with Talia before he shuts the door and they head downstairs. 

At least he knows he's dealing with ghosts and not echoes. Which yay! He can see dead people! 

He's kind of hoping this new found gift only extends to the Hales. He doesn't want to see all the ghosts around Beacon Hills. Stiles doesn't think he could deal with seeing his mother's ghost at any point in time, let alone now. 

He makes a note on his phone for him to try and talk to Talia in his next dream but for now he's going to get super drunk with his pack and chat with Kira about her magic and new ways she can channel her energy. 

Her and Derek both would love it if she didn't blow the entire lofts light bulbs. 


	6. Chapter 6

It's around 2am when Stiles can slip away from the party at the Hale house and out into the chilly morning air. He'd thought about staying there for the night but he didn't want someone to notice him disappearing. 

The few times he had slept in the Hale house he'd managed to fall asleep after everyone else and they all assumed he'd left in the early morning to go see his dad. 

He watches his breath fog up in the air as he walks home, thinking about the Talia situation and how he's going to bring it up to her in the dream. Will she even know what he's talking about? When he usually mentions the fire they have no idea it's about to happen and every conversation merges into the next one, they have to or Stiles would go insane. 

When he gets home his dad is sleeping on the sofa and the remains of the dinner Stiles left out for him are on the table. He smiles at the old man, covering him up in a blanket and turning the tv down. He moves the plate into the kitchen and leaves it in the sink - he'll clean up in the morning. 

Once he's showered off the smell of alcohol and strangers he's happy to crawl into bed and fall into a deep sleep. He only hopes he's not still full of alcohol in his dream. 

When Stiles blinks into existence outside the Hale house he's happy to see he's his current age, he realises something is different about this dream though when he looks up at the house and Talia is standing out in front of it watching him. 

She smiles warmly at him though, so Stiles deems it safe to go talk to her. "Mrs Hale." he smiles back, Talia pulls him into a strong hug and Stiles can't help but melt into it. She feels like a mother of sorts to him now and he thinks that's how it would have been if she were still here. 

"Stiles, you've grown since I last saw you. I mean properly, outside of this strange place you've got yourself into." Her smile is soft but there's concern in her tone. "I believe tonight is the first time one of us has gotten through to you? We kept trying to get the Martin girl to listen to us but I don't think it worked." Talia confesses. 

Stiles sits down on the porch steps and Talia follows him down, he bites his lip and nods while he thinks about what he wants to say. "I think I've felt your presence before? I heard you laughing when Peter first found me outside the house and I'm sure one of you helped me out of the bathtub situation." he looks at Talia for confirmation and she agrees with him. 

"Lydia told me that I was being followed and you were trying to talk to her but she said she couldn't quite see you and that you sounded like white noise." Stiles tells her how he's happy that it was the Hales and not some other ghosts following him around and that he's relieved that Talia could find him here. 

"I'm not sure where we were before the dreams started up, we weren't together that's for sure. So thank you for bringing us together in some way but Stiles, you need to stop this. You can't bring us back no matter how you try and heartbreaking as it is to say, I don't think you can stop the fire either." Talia speaks carefully and clearly with a hand on his arm, gently rubbing circles onto it and keeping him calm. 

He can't help the tears that spring forth when he hears it so candidly and he can feel how much the truth hurts inside him, it feels like his heart and soul has been scooped out and dumped on a highway for people to continuously drive over. 

Stiles laughs harshly and wipes his eyes, "I knew it was a long shot...I just - I just needed to try. " he looks up at Talia, trying to swallow back the tears and the pain. "I'm sorry I can't do more yet but I can't stop now. Not now." he shakes his head as she watches him, knowing how much she must want him to stop. 

"I didn't think I'd be able to stop you, you're like Peter in many ways and he never did as he was told." they share a small smile and sit in silence for a few moments until they hear shouts and the calm visage of the Hale house suddenly rips and reveals the Hale house set aflame. The two stare in shock before Stiles runs head first into the fire, it's the highest he's ever seen the flames rise and he doesn't know why the dream suddenly switched - it's never done it before but he thinks it might have something to do with the current Talia's presence. 

He can hear Talia shouting for him to come back but he can't, he can't just leave the house to burn without trying to get them out. The heat is unbearable but he grits his teeth pushing through the smoke, watching as it blackens his skin and can only imagine what it's doing to his lungs. The smell of burning wood and wolfs bane is overpowering to him and he hates to think about how it must feel for the wolves. 

He reaches his hands out to figure out where he is in the house since he can hardly see past the flames and smoke, his hand brushes against a familiar staircase and he begins to climb upward. He's not sure why but he hasn't seen or heard any of the Hales, it's starting to freak him out a little bit. 

He can't hear Talia any more either, just the sound of a roaring fire that doesn't know what it's destroying. 

He must have made a wrong step somewhere though because one second he's on secure ground and the next his body is falling through the floorboards and he seems to linger in the air longer than he should before he hits the entryway with all the force in his body. 

His breath is forced out of him and he's pretty sure he heard something break, he can't seem to move much so he's guessing it was somewhere in his spine. There's pain radiating from everywhere and nowhere at the same time, it feels like a wave of pain being smothered by the feeling of numbness and nothing. 

He feels removed from himself in a way. He knows he's coughing and choking on the fumes but he can hardly feel it wracking his chest. He can still feel the flames licking at his hands, arms and face though. He can feel his tears streaming down his face - somehow they're burning his face more than the fire is. 

All he can think, no, all he can _hope_ is the Hales aren't here and that Peter never has to suffer this again. He wishes Peter or any of them never had to feel it in the first place. 

He remembers Talia saying she doesn't think it's possible and laughs between coughs that the universe works in heartless ways sometimes. 

Stiles is more pissed off at himself for not being able to stop this sooner than being caught in the destruction once again. He thinks he's died in this place at least 30% of the time he's visited here. The rest of the time he's been shoved away by the Hales, dragged away by the Argent's and tortured for being a part of their pack and other times he arrived way before the fire had happened. 

When he wakes up in the entryway outside of the dream, he's not entirely sure how long it took for him to wake up - he can see daylight streaming in through the windows but he's not sure whether it's the same day or the next. It takes him half an hour to be able to move from where he's laid, his body feels abused and wrong. 

Even when he is able to move his body doesn't fully cooperate; his limbs feel to loose yet too tight at the same time, he has a migraine the size of a large truck and he thinks he might throw up. 

The house looks in better shape than he does. 

He walks home angry and upset that once again he couldn't change the outcome of the fire, though he's glad the Hales weren't a part of it this time he's pretty sure they're not back in this reality. 

Even if the house is slowly regaining itself it doesn't seem to be bringing back what he actually wants to bring back. 

He checks his phone when he sneaks back into his bedroom, his dad thankfully sound asleep in his own, and is happy to note it's the same day as before and crashes into his mattress. He wants to sleep but he doesn't think he could take another Hale dream right now. 

He settles for zoning out to Netflix, his brain isn't all quite there so he's counting it as sleep. 

When he comes back to reality it's around 5 o'clock in the afternoon and Lydia is calling him for the 8th time that day. He rolls over and begrudgingly answers the phone; "Hi you've reached Stiles' phone, he can't answer the phone right now he's currently dying, can I take a message?" 

"I'm outside." is all Stiles hears before Lydia hangs up on him, which first of all rude, second of all does nobody let him know beforehand that they're coming over to ruin his privacy? 

He can't be bothered to get out of bed to then go downstairs and open the door to then come back upstairs so he just says fuck it and uses his magic to do it. Like he said, him and Kira have been practising and his sparks lets him do a lot more than he lets on to the group. He trusts Lydia so he doesn't mind letting her know some of it and his dad went to work hours ago. 

Besides he loves the feeling of his magic circulating his body, it might help him feel more alive anyways. He slides down the bed until his hand is touching his floorboards, letting his magic flow out of him and imagining the path it takes to the doorway and inside the lock. He's satisfied when he hears the lock click and the door swing open. 

"I'm upstairs! Come up at your own risk!" he shouts out, not bothering to pull himself up onto the bed and resigning himself to awkwardly dangling off it until Lydia comes up and pushes him forward. 

"Did you shut the door?" he asks her and when she nods he sends his magic back down to lock up before focusing entirely on her. "So what's up?" 

"Isaac got worried when he realised you hadn't been at the loft all day, which caused Derek to worry and Peter was probably already panicking but didn't want to show it. Cora said you're probably getting yourself into some mess and I agreed, Kira told me to check here first though." Lydia explains to him, checking her nails with an unimpressed face before staring at him. "Don't think I won't ask you about your magic sessions later on but right now I need to know that you're okay." 

Stiles smiles happily at the thought of the guys thinking about him, he doesn't want them worrying though so he shoots off a quick text that he's okay just didn't sleep very well so he's been dazing in bed all day. 

"What are you talking about Lydia? I'm doing great honestly, powering through my work over break and hanging out with you guys has been awesome." he genuinely feels that way and Lydia knows that but they both know that's not what she's wanting to hear. 

"Really Stiles, because from where I'm sitting your aura is turning dark - not in the same way the nogitsune did - but it keeps shifting and if I look at you fully... you're not all quite there." Lydia is staring at him now, but this time it feels like she's look through him almost. 

Stiles shifts uncomfortably, not liking the way it feels to be seen like that. "I'm scared that you're doing something utterly stupid, the rest of the pack might not be able to see it Stiles but I can and you know I can." she reaches a hand out to him and he holds on tightly. 

"You're wearing death like a well worn coat..." she runs a hand a few centimetres above Stiles skin, sending shivers down his spine as she does. "You're covered in scars Stiles and I'm not talking about the ones on the physical realm you've tried to hide." Stiles flinches at that, it's a fair jab at him though - he didn't change clothes around the pack for a long time because of the damages each monster of the week did to him. 

He is a tad worried about the _'scars'_ he has spiritually though and wonders how much of a mess that version of him must look. "Lydia... I can't talk about it right now, just know that I'm trying my best to do something and it might not be the best thing to be doing but my heart needs it and I can't leave now." he's almost pleading with her but his voice doesn't waver and his intent comes off clearly. 

"That's not reassuring Stiles" Lydia sighs, running her hand through her hair and standing up, brushing off her skirt and looking at him when he joins her. 

"I don't think it was meant to be" he chuckles and hugs her tightly. "Thanks for looking out for me though Lyds, tell the pack I'll come over tomorrow and tell Peter he better not sneak through the window, I just need to get some sleep tonight." 

They both chuckle as they walk downstairs, "I'll see you tomorrow Stiles." Lydia says before she leaves, Stiles notices Kira's car outside and waves to her as Lydia heads towards it. 

He waits until they're out of sight before sighing and locking the door. He heads back to his bedroom, rummaging through his bedside cabinet until his hand settles on a certain bottle of sleeping pills. "Here goes nothing..." he makes sure he's got everything he needs on him before climbing into bed and taking them. 

He doesn't know how they'll affect the dream but he's hoping to stay there longer, so he can spend as much time as he can with Hales. It's worth a shot. 

The last thought in his head as he drifts off is; _'I hope I can wake up from this'_


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long, no matter how much I seem to plan where I'm going with this story it always ends up in another direction and I get confused. T-T

When Stiles wakes up - if you can call it waking up - he’s not quite sure where he is. He appears to be stood in a tunnel of sorts, a slow dark stream beneath his feet and strange white figures that seem more human than fish like, flowing through it and giving off his only source of light. 

“This definitely isn’t the Hale house.” he mumbles to himself, turning to look behind him but ending up face to face with a huge brick wall towering over him, running his hands over it deems it real, slimy and gross but definitely real. 

Sighing he turns back around and begins to walk forwards, letting his fingers dance across the tunnel walls and listening for anything that isn’t him walking or the quiet babbling of the water. 

“I thought there was supposed to be a light at the end of the tunnel…” he huffs to himself when it seems like he’s not even moving anymore. It feels like he’s walking in a constant loop. He stops and crouches down to stare at the glowing shapes dancing around his feet and continuing along the stream. “At least you guys are getting somewhere.” 

Gently running his hands through the water sends the creatures bobbing and weaving around his fingers and onward down the tunnel. He smiles to himself as he plays with them, it must be peaceful he thinks just swimming towards somewhere without needing to know why. 

He’s about to stand up when someone calls out to him. The word echoing around the tunnel and seeming to reverberate against him and the walls. 

“Mieczysław?” That one word - no, that one _voice_ \- makes every joint in his body lock up and his heart beat painfully, it feels like it’s shocking his body, sending him both blind and dizzy each time. 

The small sound of someone walking through the water towards him is like nails on a chalkboard to his ears. The movement sending the creatures in the water into a frenzy, he focuses on them so he doesn’t have to look up at who he fears is coming towards him. 

“Mieczysław, what have you done?” a pair of pale feet stop in front of him and a cold hand caresses his cheek, gently probing him to look upward. “Look at me, please…” the voice is quieter now she’s closer to him, no longer circling around him and suffocating him. 

It takes a few deep breaths and blinking away the wetness in his eyes for him to look up at her. “Hey mom.” He croaks out, the words seeming to take more effort than it should, it’s painful to talk to her and even more painful to stare at his mother’s warm smiling face. His words seem to break the stillness between them because she’s suddenly tugging him into her arms and crushing him in a well-needed hug. “You’ve grown up so much! I can’t believe I get to see you again, Mieczysław.” 

Stiles tentatively wraps his arms around her, finding it weird how warm it feels and a fresh set of tears falling when he realises she still smells the same even in this odd sewer system they’re in, all he can smell is her old perfume of lillies and sunshine. 

“You too Ma, I’m sorry for what happened. I’m so sorry.” He flinches at the memory of his mom screaming at him in a hospital room and his dad pulling him away. “I don’t know what I did…” He can see his dad drinking, his mom dying and himself changing. 

The arms around him tighten and a hand coming up to brush through his hair. “I’m the one who should apologise, I wasn’t myself near the end of it and if I’m being honest for a while before that. I said a lot of things that no doubt hurt you and your father both.” The hand in his hair keeps a steady rhythm as she speaks. 

“You didn’t kill me Mieczysław, you need to forgive yourself and I hope you can forgive me in time.” Stiles can feel his heart breaking and mending itself over her words, things he’s always wanted to hear but didn’t dare hope for because she wasn’t there to tell him and his father didn’t understand. He nods against her shoulder, letting the perfume wash over him and calm him down. 

“Anyway why are you here? What have you done to yourself?” she breaks the hug to look at him properly, scanning every point of him before staring at his face. “Mieczysław Stilinski, you tell me what’s going on right now.” 

His shoulders sag with a sigh and he takes a step back from his mom to hold her hands and explain the situation. “You remember the Hales right? Well not long after you died a hunter burned down their house and killed almost the entire family.” 

“Talia and her wolves? Her pack was killed, it must have felt awful to feel all the bonds breaking that night, but what does that have to do with you being here?” His mother looks at him confused and Stiles wants to ask how she knew about the werewolf situation but he’s glad he doesn’t have to waste time explaining all that too. 

“I uuh.. Well, I’m sort of trying to save them? I’m trying to stop the fire, nothing has worked so far.” he sighs heavily and rubs at the ache in his chest, he always has a lump of sadness when he thinks about the fire and how he can’t seem to do anything. 

His mom is just staring at him in disbelief until suddenly she isn’t and she’s smiling sadly at him. “You always were one to meddle in someone else’s problems, Mieczysław.” 

“I’m not sure why I’m here, usually when I fall asleep I end up at the Hale house and start trying to stop the fire or sometimes it’s just to see them. I can’t really control when I end up or stop the dreams to have actual sleep.” he explains, his mom is nodding along and deep in thought so he just continues talking. 

“I’ve tried dragging them out myself, breaking the mountain ash barriers, going after the hunters and even killing Kate before the stupid thing is supposed to happen! It just all seems to fall back into place and the house still goes up in flames.” Stiles rubs at his face in annoyance, he just wants this over with already. He wants the Hales to be alive, he wants Peter, Derek and Cora to be happy and have their family back, he wants everyone to be at peace. 

Claudia nods and takes two steps away from Stiles. “I see, so that’s why you’re here.” she breathes into her hands and Stiles watches as a small blue flame appears between them. “Do you know what you look like right now, Mieczysław?” 

Furrowing his brow at her he shrugs, “I guess I look tired and stressed? Probably should get a haircut but apart from that I look the same as usual?” he runs a hand through his hair, thinking about how he should have it cut. 

“No, I mean what you look like underneath.” She closes her eyes and widens her arms, the flame stretching in an unnatural way with them. “It’s not your soul exactly, it’s more like your other self.” she adds. The flame now elongating and forming a strange mirror of sorts. 

Stiles walks in front of it when his mom places it onto the ground and steps around it. It looks like glass but the heat radiating from it and the way the flames still move remind him it’s not. As interesting as the magic his mom just performed and the creation she’s made, it’s his reflection that he can’t look away from. 

“Is that...me?” his hand shakily touches his cheek, where it’s smooth unflawed skin in this realm in the mirror his flesh is stretched and scarred. Random parts of muscle poking through as it swirls and warps his features. It spans from his hairline, feathering across his right eye and half his nose, past his cheek and down his neck. 

He looks away briefly to tug off his shirt and throw it away so he can follow the path of burnt skin, it’s worse on his torso than on his face. Hands running along his stomach mapping where the first and second degree burns wrap around him. He can also see the dark ring around his heart that was left behind from his sacrifice. They did tell him it was never going away, guess they were telling the truth. 

“What’s my back look like?” He turns around so he can see himself i the sharp intake of breath from his mom making him flinch. "That bad, huh?” he twists to look over his shoulder at his mom and his reflection. He can’t see much but from what he can tell the full spanse of his back in red raw, random scars littering it. 

“What are these?” his mom’s touch startles him, causing him to yelp and the creatures in the water to scatter away from them. Her hand traces a pattern on his shoulder blades, the memories of someone else being inside his head and the nogitsune running rampant pushing themselves to the front of Stiles brain. 

He leans over to massage his shoulder and pulls away from his mother’s touch. “Guess if dream fires can make a scar then a real one would be there too.” He breathes in deep, holding it for a few seconds before realising it. “They would be lichtenberg marks from being possessed by a nogitsune, not a fun time for Stiles.” he lets out a hollow laugh. 

“Sounds like you’ve been through a lot, my little spark.” His mom regards him with a warm smile and she bumps her elbow into him, making him smile with her and agree. "Though I'm worried about the casualness of it all." she raises an eyebrow at him and Stiles can't help but squirm under her gaze. 

"I guess no one ever really noticed if I got injured, unless it was a huge injury or somehow directly impacted Scott or his plans... Peter noticed though, he's helped me out a few times." Stiles shrugs and rubs his neck awkwardly, "It's just how it is when you're the human of a pack and Beacon Hills is a constant shit show." 

Looking back at his reflection he smirks at himself, “I’m like a grotesque map of everything that’s happened over the years.” He doesn’t need the mirror to point out these scars to his mom. “This one is from being beaten up by a disgusting old man, this is from a car crash, oh and these are from when I was poisoned yay!” he points at his neck enthusiastically for that last one. “Eichen house isn’t as nice as you’d think.” 

His mom looks like she’s about to puke but motions for him to carry on nonetheless. “Ah, a lot of these are from smaller fights with the crazy of the week and being knocked out. This one though, was from a large glass shard I was stabbed with.” He smiles at his reflection and then turns to his mom. 

“None of it hurts as much as it does knowing I can’t save the Hales, none of it. I’d take all of this all over again if I could just bring them back somehow.” Claudia reaches up to wipe away tears he didn’t even know he had and taps his cheek gently. 

“Then we’ve got work to do Mischief,because I think I can help you.”


	8. Chapter 8

>>>>Quick edit because I read through it and realised it said Peter pulled Stiles head into his lamp and not lap and couldn't stop laughing. 

Stiles doesn’t know how much time has passed in the real world but he feels like he’s been in here for days, practising with his spark under his mom’s guidance. They argued for hours of it. Stiles arguing that he can bring the Hales back alive and his mom arguing that the universe wouldn’t allow it, the balance would be thrown way off and it could come back tenfold and wipe out the Hales once again and the rest of the pack. 

“Is that something you’re willing to risk, Mischief? Are you willing to risk killing your father and your best friends to bring the Hales back - let’s not forget they might not be all there even if you do manage it.” His mom says in a steady tone, trying not to provoke him but to calmly relay her thoughts to him. He hates that she has reasonable point and that he can’t argue back, because really he can’t kill the rest of the pack to bring back the Hales. 

He’s pretty sure Talia would kill him if he tried, she wouldn’t want to be alive if her children had to die for it. 

So he just sighs, releasing his pent up emotions with it and shakes his body to get rid of all his negative thoughts. “ _Fine_ okay, okay, then what can we do?” he stares into his mother’s eyes with determination. “If I can’t bring them back alive, then what can I do?” 

Claudia bites her lip in thought for a few seconds before a beaming smile takes over her face. “You said you’ve seen them outside of the dreams, correct? So why don’t we see if we can channel your energy into an object, it might work in bringing their ghosts to the living realm.” 

Stiles admits he gets giddy at the thought of being able to show them to the pack and having them interact with each other properly. Instead of having this one way screen they seem to have now. 

So he practises channelling for what seems like a full day. They started with the tunnel walls - at first he was pushing too little and it didn’t seem to do anything but then he did way too much and the wall started to crack or at one point completely fall apart. 

“Well I don’t want to obliterate them, so I need to find a median here.” It takes him a few more tries till he believes he’s got it right. They then decide to move onto the creatures that are swimming around them, when he first picks one up he ends up screaming and dropping it. 

“Oh come on, they’re not that bad! They’re just left over energies from animals and small creatures.” his mom chides him and picks one up herself. Stiles doesn’t miss the grimace on her face before she plasters on a grin. 

“I saw that! See they feel gross! No offense.” he smiles in apology to it when his mom hands it over. “Right let’s see what you were.” He closes his eyes and exhales slowly, feeling his spark move through him and watching the path it creates, away from his core, along his arms and out through his hands into the wriggling thing he’s holding. 

When the spectre he’s holding feels immediately heavier and more feathery? Than the slimy wisp he had before he opens his eyes, eyebrows rising and mouth falling open in shock. “What the hell is that?!” his gaze rapidly switches between his mom and the thing in his hands. 

“That, looks like a cockatrice.” His mom snorts into her hand, enjoying the horrified look that must be on his face. “Generally a mix between a reptile - in this case I’m assuming a dragon - and a chicken.” His mom takes a step closer to look at it properly, “The legend is they can kill someone by looking at them, touching them or even breathing on them. I guess it chooses it’s victims though, so you’ll be fine since it seems to like you.” 

“You’ve got to be kidding me…” He awkwardly pets the strange animal in his hands when it stares up at him expectantly. _**Bwuak! Prrrrr… Bwuak!**_ The cockatrice seems to be happy? Stiles honestly had no idea but it’s eyes are closed and it’s rubbing itself against Stiles’ arms. He seriously hopes it chooses it’s victims because this is so not the way Stiles wants to die. 

Claudia shrugs and points at the water “At least you know you can do it with a random spectre without a shape so you should be able to do it with a human ghost.” and if that’s not motivating he doesn’t know what will be. “Do you want to try again?” 

He gently places the animal on the ground, it flaps around in the water for a second before stationing itself next to Stiles feet. “Great, just the pet I’ve always wanted, a dragon-chicken.” 

The next spectre he’s able to pick up himself with a little less theatrics and keeps his eyes open this time. Focusing more on the feeling of the spark than watching it, so he can see what happens to the actual subject. He doesn’t want it to be painful for the Hales. 

This one seems to take longer to transform, Stiles has to widen his hands to keep a hold on it. He watches it elongate into a male human - a naked male human - and Stiles immediately let’s go. “What, you don’t like what you see?” a smooth deep voice echoes around him causing Stiles gaze to snap upward to stare at the man before him. 

He’s got hair in a similar style to his own but the man before him has bright auburn locks, a smatter of freckles across his face and dark green eyes that are analysing Stiles in the same fashion. “So why did you pull me out of this dollar store version of the river styx?” the guy raises an eyebrow at Stiles who’s still staring open mouthed. The cockatrice is clucking loudly and jumping around in the water around him. 

“We woke up here, guessing this is where supernatural souls get filtered? We don’t really know. I assumed you were left over energies but I suppose not.” his mom speaks up for him, elbowing him lightly to snap him out of it. “Sorry for waking you up, we were practising a summoning of sorts.” she says it calmly but the guy in front of them just bursts out laughing. 

“No need to apologise, you’ve done me a huge favour in getting me out of there. It’s like being trapped in your own mind whilst having to listen to everyone else screaming about how they were wronged.” The man stretches his arms above his head and Stiles is more aware of how naked he is, a warm blush spreading across his neck and cheeks. “Oh, I’m Freddie by the way.” 

Stiles notices the silver chain around his neck and smirks “No wonder you’re hung like a horse.” he winks and the slap on the arm his mom gives him is way worth it when Freddie bursts out laughing. “Kelpie, right?” Stiles asks, waiting for the nod Freddie gives to confirm his suspicions. 

“That I am, if you can find a way to get me out of here by the way I’ll owe you one.” he pats Stiles shoulder and chuckles to himself as the cockatrice clucks at him. “That guy seems to want out too.” 

Stiles can’t help but look at his mom with a sad smile and pull her into a crushing hug. “Oh Mischief, don’t you worry, I’ll find a way to talk to you when you go back. You’ve got the Hales hanging around you, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a boy with werewolf ghosts following him.” They share a soft chuckle together and pull away. 

“If you can find Lydia, she might be able to help you.” He picks up the cockatrice and it wriggles around until it decides to perch on his shoulder with a huff. “The strawberry blond redhead I was in love with for years, you might remember her - well she’s a banshee now.” 

“What an odd twist your life has become Mischief, then again you always were one for attracting strange things. You’ll have to introduce me to the man you’re doing all this for. He must be worth it for my boy to try so hard. “ Claudia kisses his cheek and stands back from them, so Stiles can try and wake himself up. “See you soon, Mieczysław, be safe.” 

He closes his eyes, takes a hold of the Kelpie’s hand and inhales as much as he can, imagining his spark building and growing until he exhales. He watches as a whirlwind forms around them, the cockatrice’s claws digging into his shoulder and the whistling of the wind almost deafening him. He snorts as he says the words “There’s no place like home.” Because if it worked for Dorothy it sure as hell is going to work for him. 

**\---------------------------**

When Peter hadn’t heard from Stiles since Lydia had seen him, he’d decided to go visit the boy for himself. Though he couldn’t find him at his home, he knew he wasn’t at the loft and no one else had heard from him either. So he’d try the only other place Stiles seems to be frequenting recently. His old home. 

Peter was expecting to find Stiles asleep on the floor either outside or somewhere inside the Hale house. What Peter wasn’t expecting was to find Stiles passed out in the old living room next to a naked man and a demented chicken. So of course that’s exactly what Peter found. 

“Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my home?!” Peter couldn’t help the deep growl that accompanied his voice, he was rather confused and angry for himself and his pack member. 

“Whoa there, calm down wolfie! Your home is kinda run down but beggars can’t be choosers eh?” The man smirks at him and shoos the chicken that’s running in circles around Stiles. “I’m Freddie, Stiles brought me back from the dead pretty much and he was supposed to wake up too but he seems to be stuck.” 

Peter listens to the man’s steady heartbeat but the truth doesn’t give him any comfort. “Stuck where and why are you naked?” He walks towards Stiles, checking his pulse and his forehead - he doesn’t seem to have a fever but his heartbeat is quite erratic. Though he supposes that’s the usual for the idiot in front of him. 

“Well I was stuck in spectre form, flowing down the river waiting for my killer to die before I can move on, as we all do ectera ectera.Then all of a sudden i’m being pulled out of the water, by this strange spark and his mother, shot full of energy and then poof there I was in all my glory. “ He runs his hands down his body for emphasis and then points at the chicken. “He did the chicken first, guess we were both lucky huh?” He chuckles as the chicken squawks at him and bounces up and down. 

“His mother is dead, what are you talking about.” Peter can’t deny that the man before him is telling the truth but it doesn’t mean it can’t both confuse and irritate him. “And why isn’t Stiles awake with you?” He pulls Stiles’ head into his lap and runs his hands through his hair, watching as his face relaxes a little. 

Freddie sits down on the other side of him, nodding along with Peter’s words. “That makes sense, they were talking about banshees and how they’d find a way to talk to each other again. Guess our boy here has an affinity for the dead too.” 

Peter growls at the word 'our' when Stiles most certainly does not belong to the man before him. If anything he belongs with Peter. They may not have talked much about this thing between the two of them but Peter can scent arousal on Stiles when he’s around him and they have become closer over the past few weeks. They spent most of their time in each others company and they were pack. He had bonds to prove it. 

Freddie just raises his eyebrows at him but continues with what he was saying. “Any way, they were talking about the Hales, whoever they are and how Stiles is planning on bringing them back. He’s tried bringing them back alive but it didn’t work so now he’s trying something else. That’s the gist of it anyways.” 

_**“HE’S DOING WHAT?!“**_ The words rip out of him, suddenly everything clicking into place. Stiles’ scent around the house, Stiles disappearing and practising his magic with Kira. However he’d never imagined he was doing something so stupid! 

“Jeez are you trying to deafen us all old man?!” Freddie rubs his ears, and trades glances with the chicken before looking back at him. “Guessing you know who the Hales are?” 

“That would be my family that was murdered in the very house you’re sitting in.” Peter states, waving his hand at the semi-charred remains of the room. “It seems every time Stiles comes back from what he’s doing the house restores a part of itself, I assume that’s what Stiles was getting annoyed at - that the house was coming back but my family wasn’t.” 

Freddie lets out a low whistle and rubs his jaw, “That’s a lot for such a small guy.” He looks down at Stiles with sadness written across his face. “No wonder he’s stuck in there, maybe he doesn’t want to wake up.” 

“What do you mean by that?” Peter hugs Stiles closer to him, why wouldn’t he want to wake up when he has his pack here, his alive pack. There’s no way Stiles would abandon his father, Lydia or possibly even Peter himself. 

“Well, if he’s in a time where they’re alive - wouldn’t you be there too? With them I mean. There’s really not much stopping him from staying there with them and having what little time he has before the fire.” Freddie looks at Peter with a wince. “Or maybe he’s just stuck, if the sleeping pills in his pocket have anything to do with it.” 

Peter sighs heavily and leans his forehead against Stiles’. “Wake up you stupid boy, we need you here not stuck in the past.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea okay, I needed to fill space and somehow ended up with a naked kelpie and chicken-dragon hybrid.


	9. Chapter 9

**_Fire. Skin burning. Smoke. Lungs collapsing. Talia is fighting. Peter is screaming. Kate's laughter is echoing somewhere. Stiles is running._**

He has no idea what's happening right now, one second he was clicking his heels to go home with Freddie and the chicken and the next he's here - wherever that is - and running as the scenery keeps changing around him. 

He briefly sees Cora chasing after Derek with a stick, that has something that looks a lot like a dead animal hanging off it. Not long after they seem to glitch and they're slightly older, mouths stretched open and screaming, tears rolling down their faces and Stiles is forced backwards by the sight of them. 

Stiles knows it's not real, he knows that they weren't there when the fire happened but the image in front of him is so damn life like that his heart feels like it's ripping to pieces. "I swear I'll help you!" he screams at them and once again their faces change from horrific screams to wide mouthed laughter that feels an awful lot like they're mocking him. 

The two move toward him, each step synced together and smiles stretching further. "You? Help us?" Cora sneers at him and he can't help but flinch at her tone, "You can't even wake up, how do you expect to wake us up?" 

"Never mind stop the fire or bring back my family." Derek laughs like it's the funniest thing in the world but the look in his eyes screams disgust. "Pathetic, why don't you burn instead?" 

Stiles' knees hit the floor, the pain echos through him but it's nothing compared to what the words are doing to him. "I... I would, if I knew it would work I'd do it." His voice cracks and it's hard for him to swallow around the lump forming in his throat. 

More footsteps sound around him and when he manages to look around, more of the Hale family has joined them. Forming a circle around him and blocking him in. "Does it need to work? How would you know anyway, you'll be dead so why not just try it?" Laura speaks up, eyebrow perfectly raised and hand on her hip. 

He sags to the floor and tries to count to ten but he keeps getting stuck on six and has to start over. He can see the Hales inching closer to him and the numbers he can reach drops by one each time. "Stiles Stilinski the spark that burned alive." are the last words he hears before he's abruptly falling through the floor and dropped into water so cold he can feel his limbs locking up seconds after he hits the surface. 

The words of the Hales are replaced with water rushing past his ears and his heartbeat pounding against it. He needs to find the _real_ Hales. He needs to find Talia. 

He manages to open his eyes under the water, it's incredibly dark down here but can see a light above so he heads for that. Forcing his legs to kick and his arms to drag him upward. 

One deep breath is all he gets as he breaks through the waves before multiple hands latch onto his legs and drag him back under. Looking down doesn't do him any good, there's nothing there. Nothing that he can see anyway. 

He kicks out and the darkness, working his legs free from his invisible chains and swims back to the surface. He doesn't stop this time, he just keeps swimming above water towards the orange glow that looks larger and larger as he swims. 

It doesn't take long for him to realise he found the Hale house. There's only a few house fires he's seen, and this is the only one with a mountain ash barrier and werewolves howling as they loose their lives as they know it. 

**"TALIA!"** his scream rips through the air almost like Lydia's banshee scream, he scrambles onto shore and breaks into a sprint toward the house. Ignore the burning muscles. Ignore the shivers wracking his body. Ignore the cold setting into his skin. It'll all be replaced by fire in a few seconds anyway. 

He launches himself through the barrier and into the house. "Talia! Peter! Anyone?!" the water helps him through the first bout of flames but the smoke is a battle in itself. It feels like it's forcing open his mouth and crawling down his throat, sticking to his skin and lungs. 

**"Stiles? Stiles!"** As soon as Stiles figures out where the voice is coming from he's bolting up the stairs, dodging the holes in the woodwork and squinting against the smoke and ash in the air. 

"We're in here! We can't open the door!" the voice, Stiles hasn't figured out who it is yet - something isn't quite right about it. It starts off sounding like Peter but it finishes sounding like Cora, the second cry was most definitely Derek though. 

He doesn't care, he just needs to open this door and get them out of here! 

Gathering up his shirt helps him open the door, he can still feel the heat of the doorknob through it but it's better than his skin melting into it. "I'll get you out!" he tries to push the door open but it won't budge, so he throws himself against it but still nothing. 

"I'm gonna need you guys to pull as hard as you can while I try force it open!" he shouts through the wood, he's met with an eerie silence until he hears a small giggle that makes the hairs of the back of his neck stand on end. 

"It's open, silly!" a child's voice squeals out and Stiles hesitantly grabs the doorknob, no heat can be felt from it this time. He's can't feel any heat from the fire behind him either. A cold shiver spreads through him, he shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair. 

He takes two deep breathes before pushing the door open and before his mind can even begin to imagine the horror in front of him, he's bent in two and throwing up violently. 

Nails digging into his thighs, bile rising from his stomach and eyes screwed shut as the image burns itself into his brain. The Hales lying on the floor writhing as one big mass of flesh and limbs. Peter's full left side was fused with Talia's back, who's face had merged with Laura, and it kept on going and going. All of them crying out for Stiles in one amalgamated voice. 

"Oh fuck, I think I'm gonna pass out." He wipes his mouth and wretches again, nothing more will come up though. Everything in his body aches and he's tired, so so tired. But he can't find the real Hales and he doesn't know how to wake up. 

"What the fuck is this place?" he sighs, turning away from the mess of bodies and once again the scenery changes. He's in the Hales living room, they're all watching him and teenage Peter is frowning at him. 

They stare at each other for a while; Stiles not knowing what horror is coming next and Peter is well, being Peter. "I have a feeling you're making future me sad right now." is all Peter says before tapping him on the forehead, Stiles surroundings immediately blink out of existence and he's back to standing in complete darkness again. 

He takes a moment to breathe and calm down, he doesn't know how long his brain will hold out dealing with this many stressors. He hopes his unconscious body is somewhere comfortable right now. 

When he examines the area he's in another time, he notices a wall with a different texture to the rest. Walking up to it proves that it's definitely the odd one out, the rest seem to be smooth and solid but this is almost stone like. 

He trails his hand across it as he follows it, eventually coming out to a small pond. There's a large weeping willow at the side and a few pond lilies floating calmly in the water. 

Stiles leans over the water to inspect it before deeming it safe and gently cupping his hands in it to rinse his face and gulp a few mouthfuls down - it's strangely sweet. 

Staring at his reflection proves helpful when it slowly begins to change in front of him. One side of his face seems perfectly fine, save for a few scars, but the other side is completely burnt - even coming into his hairline - and he can't help but trace the pattern on his skin. It's not there on his physical body but he can follow along with his reflection. He grimaces looking at it, his mom must have been shocked to see him like this. It's not the way he wanted to greet her in the afterlife. 

Though he assumes she wasn't expecting to meet her son chasing werewolves in the afterlife either. 

A ripple in the water that catches his attention, a quick glance upward causes Stiles to flail backward and land on his ass. There's a man on the other side! A man he doesn't know but at least everything seems to be in the correct place and he doesn't seem like a walking nightmare out to get him. 

"Uh... Hello? Can you hear me?" he squawks out, waving his arms around to get the mans attention. "Hellloooo?" Stiles frowns, he can only do so much flailing before making a fool of himself by most likely falling into the pond. 

"I can hear you clearly boy, sit down." an old yet soft voice carries across to him, Stiles jaw drops but he sits down all the same. "What you're trying to do is futile. I can't allow it to happen..." the man looks up at him, dark green eyes meet his and Stiles is taken aback by them. 

"I'm truly sorry Mieczyslaw, it's just not how the universe works." the man pushes a lily out towards him, it slowly dies as it makes it's way across and by the time it reaches Stiles it's a tiny shrivelled brown mimicry of what it once was. 

Stiles sighs, letting all his pain, fears and worthlessness seep out of him. "Are you death?" he asks, eyes closed and listening intently to whatever the man has to say. 

"One of many yes, though I suppose I'm the first one you've met so candidly." The strangers voice is oddly calming to Stiles right now, he shifts so he's laid down on the edge of the water. The soft rippling of the pond and the man talking to him is almost the perfect lullaby. 

"I can't bring them back can I?" Stiles whispers out, knowing the man heard him all the same. "I'm guessing if I tried any more, I'd end up with the mess back there?" he waves his hand in the general direction of the chaos he came from. 

"I'm afraid so. You can keep the chicken and the kelpie, though they won't stay corporeal for long, you'd have to keep channelling energy into them every so often. " He hears a soft chuckle and opens his eyes see a small smile grace the mans face. 

"I hear they were giving the guys at the office some trouble anyway and no I cannot let you do the same with the Hales. It's too big, too many variables, too public. You understand ?" he looks at Stiles with a concerned expression and there's one thing Stiles never thought he'd witness. A grim reaper looking at him with concern. 

"You know, I always thought that if I were to ever meet a reaper, they'd look at me with more of a annoyed expression for how many times I've skirted death rather than the concerned parent type look." Stiles huffs out a laugh, smiling warmly and waving his hand in whatever gesture. 

"I know I can't bring them back, there's not much more I can try aside from necromancy and advanced blood magic but I assume they'll all bring me back to you or I'd just die and a proper exchange wouldn't be made." The reaper nods along with his explanation, so Stiles crosses those two off his list for good. 

"I'll still be able to talk to them right? I can try to project them at least, like Freddie and the cockatrice?" He's suddenly extremely worried that he'll lose all his options and have to face Peter with nothing but the ideas of an insane man and a shit ton of emotional trauma. 

"I'll allow that yes, you've worked hard enough for it Mieczyslaw." He taps the water, taking Stiles eyes away from him to see the once crystal blue water turn into a window of sorts. He can see himself on the Hale house floor and Peter holding him. 

"Is that Freddie? Naked.. Next to my unconscious body... With Peter shouting at him? Brilliant." Stiles sighs but he can't help but smile. Even when he's knocked out cold he's causing chaos somewhere. "Gotta live up to my name somehow." 

The reaper gestures at the water and they both stand across from each other once more. "Before you return, I'd like to ask you to keep practising your magic with the Kistune, it'll become helpful in the future. Don't get stuck in the past again boy and help those who do." The words carry weight that Stiles is already thinking about, there's at least ten different tangents he's taken from just the tone of voice alone. 

"I thought you weren't allowed to get involved so much?" Stiles raises a brow and the reaper just shrugs, "I'm rooting for you." is all the man says and gestures at the water more forcefully this time. 

"Share the money with me if you've made a bet! See you, hopefully not so soon!" Stiles calls out as he takes a few steps backward and dives into the water. The water pushing through his clothing and caressing his body is short lived, after a few strokes he's waking up in Peter's arms and coughing his lungs up. 

**"STILES!?" "Sparky!" "Bwuak!"**


End file.
